Abstract: A compact and portable stretcher has a rigid body board long enough and wide enough to support a supine human body. It is overlaid with an inflatable mattress and may be flanked by inflatable buoyancy tubes.The body board is preferably made up from a number of rigid portions each the full width of the board and hingedly joined together to fold up around the deflated flank tubes and mattresses to form a back-pack in which the inflatable components are protected in transport by the body board portions.The body board is held flat by stiffener strings along the long edges of the body board. These comprise elements hingedly connected where the body board portions are joined, and movable between a relaxed disposition where they permit folding of the board and a standing disposition where they hold the board flat for use.